PRINTER'S NO. 3683
No. 2616 Session of 1976
INTRODUCED BY DORR, A. C. FOSTER JR., ANDERSON, GEESEY AND LEHR,
SEPTEMBER 8, 1976
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CONSUMER PROTECTION,
SEPTEMBER 20, 1976
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of May 28, 1937 (P.L.1053, No.286), entitled
2 "An act relating to the regulation of public utilities;
3 defining as public utilities certain corporations, companies,
4 associations, and persons; providing for the regulation of
5 public utilities, including, to a limited extent,
6 municipalities engaging in public utility business, by
7 prescribing, defining, and limiting their duties, powers, and
8 liabilities, and regulating the exercise, surrender or
9 abandonment of their powers, privileges, and franchises;
10 defining and regulating contract carriers by motor vehicle
11 and brokers in order to regulate effectively common carriers
12 by motor vehicle; conferring upon the Pennsylvania Public
13 Utility Commission the power and duty of supervising and
14 regulating persons, associations, companies, and
15 corporations, including, to a limited extent, municipal
16 corporations subject to this act, and administering the
17 provisions of this act; authorizing the commission to fix
18 temporary rates; placing the burden of proof on public
19 utilities to sustain their rates and certain other matters;
20 authorizing a permissive or mandatory sliding scale method of
21 regulating rates; providing for the supervision of financial
22 and contractural relations between public utilities and
23 affiliated interests, and supervision and regulation of
24 accounts and securities or obligations issued, assumed, or
25 kept by persons, associations, companies, corporations or
26 municipal corporations subject to this act; conferring upon
27 the commission power to vary, reform, or revise certain
28 contracts; conferring upon the commission the exclusive power
29 to regulate or order the construction, alteration,
30 relocation, protection, or abolition of crossings of
31 facilities of public utilities, and of such facilities by or
32 over public highways, to appropriate property for the
1 construction or improvement of such crossings, and to award
2 or apportion resultant costs and damages; authorizing owners
3 of such property to sue the Commonwealth for such damages;
4 providing for ejectment proceedings in connection with the
5 appropriation of property for crossings; conferring upon the
6 commission power to control and regulate budgets of public
7 utilities; imposing upon persons, associations, companies,
8 and corporations (except municipal corporations) subject to
9 regulation, the cost of administering this act; prescribing
10 and regulating practice and procedure before the commission
11 and procedure for review by the courts of commission action;
12 giving the court of common pleas of Dauphin County exclusive
13 original jurisdiction over certain proceedings; prescribing
14 penalties, fines, and imprisonment for violations of the
15 provisions of this act and regulations and orders of the
16 commission, and the procedure for enforcing such fines and
17 penalties; and repealing legislation supplied and superseded
18 by or inconsistent with this act," prohibiting certain public
19 utilities from discontinuing service for nonpayment of
20 retroactive charges.
21 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
22 hereby enacts as follows:
23 Section 1. Section 402.1, act of May 28, 1937 (P.L.1053,
24 No.286), known as the "Public Utility Law, added March 1, 1974
25 (P.L.109, No.25), is amended to read:
26 Section 402.1. Days and Circumstances Discontinuance of
27 Service is Prohibited.--(a) Except when required to prevent or
28 alleviate an emergency as defined by the Public Utility
29 Commission, except in the case of danger to life or property, no
30 public utility, as defined in subclauses (a), (b), (e) and (g)
31 of clause (17) of section 2 of this act, shall discontinue, and
32 the commission shall not authorize such a public utility to
33 discontinue, except upon request of the customer, for nonpayment
34 of charges or for any other reason, the rendering of service
35 during the following periods:
36 (1) On Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
37 (2) On a bank holiday or on the day preceding a bank
38 holiday.
39 (3) On a holiday observed by the public utility or on the
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1 day preceding such holiday. A holiday observed by a public
2 utility shall mean any day on which the business office of the
3 public utility is closed to observe a legal holiday, to attend
4 public utility meetings or functions or for any other reason.
5 (4) On a holiday observed by the commission or on the day
6 preceding such holiday.
7 (b) No public utility as defined in subclauses (a), (b), (e)
8 and (g) of clause (17) of section 2 of this act, shall
9 discontinue the rendering of service for nonpayment of
10 retroactive charges. All payments received by a public utility
11 for services rendered shall first be allocated in full to
12 payment of all charges other than retroactive charges before any
13 portion of such payment may be allocated to retroactive charges.
14 The public utility shall issue a separate statement for
15 retroactive charges. Nothing herein shall be construed to deny a
16 public utility any right of action, otherwise available, as a
17 result of the nonpayment of any retroactive charge. Retroactive
18 charge shall mean any charge imposed as a result of a commission
19 or judicial determination that a rate increase sought by the
20 public utility, which had been wholly or partially suspended,
21 was initially proper in whole or in part.
22 Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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